Guatemalan nationals convicted on human trafficking charges after luring minor girls to work in homes, hotels

A Guatemalan national pleaded guilty on Friday to three counts of forced labor and two counts of conspiracy to commit forced labor after he allegedly conspired with others to bring two minors from Guatemala to the US to work in their homes.

34-year-old Lorenza Domingo-Castaneda, pleaded guilty to the counts in the Central District of Illinois. Co-defendant Catarina Domingo-Juan, 37, pleaded guilty to the same counts on August 18, and another co-defendant, Domingo Francisco-Juan, 43, pleaded guilty on August 30 to forced labor, conspiracy to commit forced labor, kidnapping and conspiracy to commit kidnapping, according to the Department of Justice.

The defendants, who are siblings, conspired to bring two children from Guatemala to the United States to work in their homes between December 2015 and March 2021. 

The defendants "compelled the victims to provide domestic services within the homes and to work outside the homes at local hotels and factories" and "used false promises of a better life and an education to gain the permission of the victims’ mothers for their minor daughters to travel to the United States to live with the defendants."

Domingo-Castaneda and Domingo-Juan allegedly compelled a third victim to work in their homes and at local businesses.

"The defendants isolated the victims in their homes, restricted their communications with their family in Guatemala and subjected them to physical, verbal and psychological abuse, among other coercive means," the Department of Justice said.

The defendants face 20 years to life in prison as well as restitution. 

US Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois said, "Human trafficking is a scourge that affects not only far-flung locales but our local communities as well. Traffickers prey on vulnerable victims – including children – bringing them to the United States and entangling them in forced labor schemes. The Central District of Illinois is committed to prosecuting these crimes and further asks community members who are aware of any signs of such exploitation to pass that information on to law enforcement."

"Labor traffickers only care about one thing — money," said Special Agent in Charge Sean Fitzgerald of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Chicago. "Those subjected to domestic servitude are robbed of their dignity and freedom. Thankfully, these victims were rescued thanks to the efforts of law enforcement. Apprehending labor and human traffickers who take advantage of our most vulnerable and rescuing those exploited will always be a top priority for HSI."